A Walmart store in Mooresville was reopened early Wednesday afternoon, several hours after being closed due to a threat, officials said.

Safety officials gave the go-ahead around 12:15 p.m. for employees and shoppers to re-enter the store, on Norman Station Boulevard, off N.C. 150. That is a short distance east of Exit 36 on Interstate 77.

Kim Sellers, a spokeswoman for Mooresville police, said authorities closed the store Wednesday morning after a threat had been received. Officials said someone had threatened to release a chemical inside the building.

The store was evacuated, and a number of police, fire and emergency medical vehicles closed off the parking lot. Hazmat crews spent several hours in the store, authorities said, before giving the all-clear.